February 2056 – Yangzhou City, Earth
The wind swept across the rooftops of Yangzhou City, its chill whispering like a distant reminder that the world outside the safe zones was anything but kind. Beyond the steel-reinforced borders of human civilization, monsters ruled the land. Cities like Yangzhou weren't homes—they were shelters. Fortresses against extinction.
In one such city, atop a weathered but fortified rooftop, two silhouettes moved under the pale morning sun. Each motion carved the air with purpose. No wasted effort. No excess strength.
Ryan stood shirtless, sweat running down his back as he threw a series of punches at a reinforced steel dummy. His arms trembled slightly with each impact, but his eyes remained calm, focused.
Across from him, Elsa, a silver-haired young woman with a quiet presence and graceful balance, practiced footwork and sudden strikes with methodical precision. She moved like water flowing around rock—smooth but dangerous.
They trained in silence.
There was no music. No countdowns. Only the dull impact of fists on metal, the hiss of exhaled breath, and the city humming below.
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> "I died… but this time, I'll live with purpose."
Ryan often recalled his past life—a simple man with simple goals, taken by death in a selfless act. Saving a child from a truck had ended that life.
But when he opened his eyes again, it wasn't Heaven. It was Earth, 2056. Not the Earth he had known. No, this was the world of Swallowed Star—a story he'd once read, now terrifyingly real.
Unlike Luo Feng, he had no special artifact, no divine luck. What he had was knowledge—of what was coming, of who would rise, and who would fall.
> "I don't need cheats. I just need to start before the storm."
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Training Before the Threshold
"Strike from the center," Ryan reminded himself aloud as he flowed into a pivot-step and punch. The motion compressed his weight into his core before driving it outward into the post.
Elsa responded, mirroring his rhythm. "Anchor your balance before rotating."
They weren't ordinary teens anymore.
Over the past year, they had trained harder than anyone in their age group. They studied the biomechanics of movement, modified existing techniques, and developed early forms of what they hoped would become their own styles.
But they were still only human.
> Ryan's current performance:
Punching Force: 1246 kg
Speed: 31 m/s
> Elsa's current performance:
Punching Force: 1321 kg
Speed: 29 m/s
These numbers—though impressive—barely scratched the surface of true warrior power. But they were enough to qualify them for the next step:
The Quasi-Warrior Examination.
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Quiet Moments
As they paused, Elsa took a seat beside a crate and wiped her forehead with a cloth.
Ryan tossed her a bottle of water. "Nervous?"
She caught it. "No. You?"
"A little," he admitted. "We've trained for this, but training and official exams aren't the same."
Elsa sipped from her bottle and leaned back. "We've been through worse. You remember that night in the outer sector when we thought a monster had broken through?"
Ryan smiled faintly. "Turned out to be a construction drill... but we didn't sleep for three days."
She laughed—a light sound that eased the tension between them.
"I know we haven't really talked about… us," she said quietly.
Ryan looked at her. "You don't have to say anything now."
She smiled. "Good. Then I won't."
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Limit Dojo – Yangzhou Branch
Later that afternoon, the heavy gates of the Limit Dojo closed behind them with a hiss of compressed steel.
Inside, they were greeted by Instructor Wang, a sharp-eyed veteran in his forties with a practical demeanor and a body that still moved like a seasoned warrior.
"You two are here to register for the Quasi-Warrior Evaluation?" he asked.
Ryan nodded. "Yes, sir."
Wang looked them up and down. "I've seen your training logs. Most people in your age group never even cross 1000 kg punch force. Your numbers… are not normal."
Elsa stepped forward calmly. "We won't be hiding our strength today."
"Good," Wang said. "Let's see what you're made of."
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Testing Grounds
They stepped into the chamber. The high-speed monitors and reinforced strike testers hummed with power. A few other examinees watched from the observation window.
Ryan went first.
He took a deep breath, stepped into position, and drove his fist forward with full force.
> DING!
Punching Force: 1246 kg
Speed: 31.2 m/s
A moment later, Elsa repeated the same with poise and quiet precision.
> DING!
Punching Force: 1321 kg
Speed: 29.4 m/s
Gasps echoed from behind the glass.
Wang narrowed his eyes. "That's well past the basic threshold. With numbers like that, you'll attract attention."
He then motioned them to the reflex chamber—a red circle on the floor surrounded by 12 automated machine guns.
"The test: remain inside the red circle for 60 seconds. If you're hit by more than 60 bullets, you fail. Remember, these are high-speed foam rounds, not real bullets."
Most candidates were lucky to be hit only 40–50 times.
Ryan and Elsa? They wouldn't be touched.
As the test began, Ryan activated his micro-movement technique. It was a subtle art—small shifts in posture, muscle control, reaction timing. Not dodging wildly—but flowing like water between the shots.
Elsa did the same, her body gliding in tiny arcs that seemed to predict the shots before they came.
The result?
> Bullets Hit: 0
Reflex Time: Extreme
Technique Detected: Micro-Movement
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Instructor Wang's Reaction
Wang stared at the data for a long time.
"You two…" he muttered. "This kind of precision? Micro-movements are only seen in warriors who've faced real death."
He looked at them directly. "You'll both be approved to learn the Five Sets of Heaven Cultivation Techniques. With your talent, you won't stay in the Warrior realm for long."
He turned to his assistant. "Contact the branch president. I want him to see this himself."
Ryan and Elsa exchanged a look.
It had begun.
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Final Scene – Evening Before Cultivation
That evening, Ryan sat on the rooftop again, watching the horizon.
Elsa sat beside him. The quiet between them was comfortable now.
"We're really doing this," she said.
"We'll receive the Five Hearts Cultivation Technique tomorrow," Ryan said. "That's when our real journey starts."
Elsa rested her head lightly against his shoulder.
"No turning back."
"Not now," Ryan said. "Not ever."
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End of Chapter 1
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